Malaysia’s Long-Delayed LRT3 Line Is Finally Ready To Open — Nine Years After Construction Began
The LRT3 Shah Alam Line was held up at the finish line by software faults in its signalling system, which forced an extended Fault Free Run stress test before the line could be certified safe for passengers.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke confirmed on Monday (15 June) that the Shah Alam Line will launch by the end of June, with the exact date to be announced within the next two weeks.
Trial runs have been completed without issue, he said.
The holdup primarily came down to software.
During final testing, engineers found faults in the train’s signalling and control systems — the digital infrastructure that tells a driverless train where it is, how fast to go, and when to stop, and until those were resolved, the line could not be certified safe.
Authorities extended a mandatory stress-testing period, called a Fault Free Run, which requires the system to operate continuously without a single recorded fault before it is cleared for passengers, a process that took longer than anyone had planned.
The line eventually cost RM21.93 billion — including an extra RM5.3 billion added back in when five previously cancelled stations were reinstated under the 2024 Budget.
A Line Nine Years In The Making
LRT3 is a 37-kilometre automated, driverless light rail line running from Bandar Utama in Petaling Jaya to Johan Setia in Klang — cutting through one of the most congested and underserved corridors in the Klang Valley.
Twenty permanent stations, with five more provisioned for future expansion. Interchange connections to the Kelana Jaya LRT and KTM Komuter lines are built in.
At full capacity, it is projected to move over 18,000 passengers per hour.
It will serve an estimated two million residents across Shah Alam, Klang, and the western Selangor corridor — areas that have long had the population density of a major urban centre without the public transport infrastructure to match.
The stations themselves are worth noting: the elevated design draws on the tanjak, the traditional folded Malay headgear, shaped to promote natural ventilation rather than dependence on air conditioning.
It is a small detail, but in a country where station design is rarely discussed, it signals that someone was paying attention.
Three Other Announcements, In Brief
At the same press conference, Loke announced three other things that got less attention.
The design forces drivers to slow down without requiring enforcement; about 20,000 students stand to benefit, with expansion planned.
At the same time, Malaysia’s proposed transport safety investigation board — the MTSB, which would independently investigate road, rail, aviation and maritime accidents — has Cabinet approval but is not ready for Parliament.
The legal framework and the agency’s exact responsibilities are still being worked out.
Loke said existing ministry departments will continue handling investigations in the meantime.
